Puppy Socialization

Confident Dogs are Made of This

The first 16 weeks of a puppy’s life is a uniquely critical time for learning about the world and developing the resiliency required for confidence as an adult dog.

Welcome to the Wide, Wide World Puppy!

Early Socialization Matters

Puppy Socialization, what is it?

Puppy socialization is the process of accumulating and caching sensory and social experiences during the first 16 weeks of life when the puppy brain is wired to process and store emotional responses for future reference. 

Robust puppy socialization aids the development of emotion regulation and builds the resiliency required in adolescence and adulthood;  well-socialized puppies as adolescents and adults are much less likely to panic/over-react when encountering strange dogs, people, sights and sounds throughout their entire lives.

Preparing puppies to be adult dogs in the real world is therefore the most critically important and time-sensitive task for guardians and dog professionals alike.  

There is nothing more important than getting very young pups out of the house and into different environments to observe and explore the world from a safe distance, with guardians close by and ready to calmly intervene at the first sign of fear or overwhelm. 

The function of puppy socialization is protective and preventative; puppies learn to manage (or not manage) fear and overwhelm during this period depending on the nature and range of encounters, and the support felt or not felt by the pup during or immediately (within seconds) after each.

Effective puppy socialization is active, intentional and supportive.  It involves creating opportunities for numerous exposures to novel sensations and experiences and being present to facilitate and intervene according to the puppy’s unique and changing responses. 

 

Puppy Socialization. What it is not.

Is not

  • taking a puppy to an off-leash dog park, or saying hello to strange dogs on leash
  • allowing the pup to ‘figure it out’ or ‘learn a lesson’ if consequences may injure, startle, or overwhelm
  • allowing the pup to find itself in situations that require more skill or experience than it has
For Help with Puppy Socialization, Reach Out

The BIG challenge with puppy socialization…is that it doesn’t seem necessary.

There’s a paradox at work in the early weeks of a puppy’s life:  at the very most critical time for introducing novel sensory and social experiences, very young puppies seem content at home and with routine.  By nature, puppies are friendly, curious, and content with routine.  But these early characteristics often betray the reality of the future dog incubating inside the puppy.

Early affability and flexibility suggest that the pup already has the world by the tail, that there’s nothing to rush about, that there’s a whole lifetime for exploring the wide, wide world.  Unfortunately, if puppy is not taken out of its familiar family environments and is  not exposed to novel stimuli–or is under-supported in the face of new and scary experiences–the seeds of reactivity and fear-aggression can incubate underground and out of sight.

The difficult and sometimes debilitating behavioural symptoms of fear-reactivity don’t show up until adolescence, long after the critical window for protective puppy socialization has closed.

♡♡ Love is not Enough ♡♡

Active Intentional Supported Socialization (AISS) should start at three weeks of age or as soon as you get your puppy, ideally no later than at 10 weeks, and continue until the pup is 4 months old (and beyond as well).

Introduce Your Puppy to These Things

Strangers
Strangers
Let puppies observe many different visitors--days and evenings--entering your home, and strangers out and about. Be relaxed in your demeanour and feed treats as visitors and strangers come into view. Include humans of different skin colours, ages and sizes who are, walking, running, crawling, dancing, talking loudly, singing, playing sports and tackling each other, hitting/kicking balls, swinging bats and rackets; riding in and on things; carrying umbrellas, knapsacks, guitars, rakes; and wearing hats, helmets puffy coats and using canes and wheel chairs.
Objects
Objects
Objects in the daylight and in the dark. Different shapes, sizes, smells, sounds. Things that blend and whirl, beep and play tunes, bang and boom and blow in the wind.​ Moving objects fast and slow. (Lawn mowers, vacuum cleaners, garbage trucks, buses and construction equipment while they are still and turned off, and later when they are running). Non-motorized moving things (bicycles, carts, baby carriages, skateboards).
Texture, Touch, Places
Texture, Touch, Places
Surfaces--soft, hard, wet, slippery, crinkly, smooth, warm, cold, squishy, wobbly, crunchy, scratchy, shiny; metal, grass, sand, gravel, pavement; standing high-up on a table (vet, grooming), lying down under a chair, in a car, in a boat. Body Handling—human touch/pressure to the collar, legs, paws, tail, back, shoulders, ears, snout, open mouth, pull up on eye lids. Touching from behind (mild startle), light restraint (hug from behind for a second, offer a treat and repeat).
Baby, Toddlers, Kids, and Cats Too
Baby, Toddlers, Kids, and Cats Too
Human babies and kids are unpredictable, loud, and often fast and erratic in their movements and approach. (Cats are quiet but also may move erratically and hiss or swipe; introduce puppy to cats while they are small. Use a protective barrier so they can explore each other safely and at their own pace while they establish trust.) Expose pup to babies crying and kicking and waving their arms, and grabbing, and crawling. Let them watch from a safe place or behind a protective barrier. Toddlers toddle, run, change directions fast, suddenly jump, screech, carry and throw toys. Teach children that they must not grab, run towards, sit on, go face to face with, hit, or hug the dog.
Different Environments
Different Environments
City with tall buildings, shadows, noise, vehicles, sudden sounds, and city smells; narrow or crowded walking paths, intersections, tight corners, other dogs passing nearby on leash; quiet streets, open spaces; nature--near water, forests, fields, farms; the sight of cows, horses, chickens, machinery.
Sounds & Smell
Sounds & Smell
Sudden onset and background sounds--different pitches and volumes​. Though smell is a dog’s most important sense, acuity takes time to develop. Offer items for pup to choose to sniff or not. Allow lingering on smells, including humans, their clothing, and other dog butts. Be aware that pup will be affected by smells that you do not pick up.

Guidelines for Providing AISS

During Introduction

  • Keep the distance.   Don’t force contact.  
  • Make the first few exposures mild, short, and sweet.  
  • Enjoy the exposures and whenever possible, reduce the stress and increase the freedom by using protective barriers–gates and x-pens and fences etc.
  • Watch pup at all times. A pup turning it’s head away or trying to escape means it needs space; back up and/or turn down the intensity to keep your pup feeling safe while still exposed. 
  • Convey safety with a calm voice, slow movements, pleasant/neutral facial expression, proximity (stay close/allow pup to lean or climb on you, or hide between your legs) timed delivery of treats and sometimes play (the food and the play must be the kind the pup likes/would choose).

About using Treats:

  • Never lure or bribe the pup to go closer

  • Ensure pup perceives the stimulus first (the point at which puppy is aware of the sound, feels the touch, sees the object, person, animal, or notices the movement) and then offer food

  • Keep food out of sight, and your hand out of your pocket or food bag, until the pup is aware of the stimulus.

  • Give treats when the stimulus presents, during exposure, or just as it ends.

  • If pup doesn’t want the food, don’t force it.  Instead, adjust distance or support; not eating  may indicate pup is feeling worried.

 

Bones and Bonuses Galore:

The benefits from actively and intentionally socializing your pup are numerous and fabulous. They include: the pleasure of slowing down to watch the world with your pup and through his/her eyes;  the humour of witnessing puppy’s discoveries and antics; the learning about your one-of-a-kind pup as you take on the role of ‘follower’, ‘audience’, and ‘helper’:  

  • how does s/he figure things out; 
  • how inventive or determined is s/he in her efforts to succeed;
  • how easily does s/he accept/stop trying when something s/he wants isn’t available;
  • does s/he have an ‘off-switch’, initiate mini-breaks;
  • is she more of a watcher or a doer at this stage;
  • what interests her in different environments, what does she gravitate towards; 
  • how and when does she check in; 
  • is she using her nose much yet, or is she responding more to what she hears or sees at this point; 
  • how does s/he let you know when s/he’s had enough

Learn what your dog loves, and love what your dog learns'.

Puppy socialization is work. But you don’t have to do it alone.  Other informed and caring adults, and older children, can help.   Kindred Creatures can help with the planning.  Call today for professional guidance. Or, let us take your puppy out into the Wide, Wide World while you’re at work.  Our puppy excursions are a rich investment in your puppy’s future. 
For Professionally-Lead Puppy Excursions, Reach Out

A Special Note about Dog Parks

It is not possible to adequately protect a puppy at a public dog park.   ​Here’s why:
  • We have no control over the behaviour of other dogs in public off-leash settings
  • Things happen/dogs move very fast
  • We may not be able to intervene as quickly or adequately as we think we can
The dogs who go to dog parks:
  • May not have experience with puppies
  • May not like puppies
  • May like puppies but not black ones, or females, or fluffy ones, or…
  • May be big and scary even from a distance
  • May lack spatial awareness and say hello with body slams that hurt and startle and terrorize a pup 
  • May have rough play-styles that overwhelm or hurt a pup
  • May have poor emotion regulation/suffer from over-arousal and come on too strong
  • May be running in a group and lose their own good minds and manners to over-arousal and bullying 
  • May be triggered by the group energy and ambush/aggress on your pup
  • May attack your pup
Puppies’ needs for being in the company of other dogs are best met by planning supervised playdates with agemates.  

Kindred Creatures is focused on fostering optimism and contentment in your relationship with your dog.

We are committed to helping guardians transition away from aversive tools and toward positive, respectful techniques that build trust, confidence, and meaningful communication.

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